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Vehicle fee on November ballot

July 10, 2010, 02:09 AM Daily Journal Staff Report

With the state facing a $20 billion deficit and spending less on transportation, the City/County Association of Governments decided to put a measure on the November ballot to impose a $10 fee for vehicles registered in the county.

If approved, the vehicle registration fee would generate $6.7 million annually for 25 years to fund countywide transportation programs and fix local roads.

C/CAG is a county agency charged with addressing transportation and air quality issues, among others, and is comprised of a 21-member board of local elected officials.

The fee can be imposed through a majority vote ballot measure under legislation authored by state Sen. Loni Hancock, D-Oakland, that was signed into law late last year.

About half the money raised, if the measure passes, will be doled out to cities based on population and road miles. Under the formula, the city of San Mateo would get about $375,000 annually for road fixes while Foster City would get about $106,000 annually. On Thursday, the board added that each city would receive at least $75,000.

The other half, about $3.2 million, would go toward funding transit operations including services for seniors and people with disabilities provided by Caltrain and SamTrans. About 5 percent of the money would go toward administrative cost.

Cities can use the money for pavement resurfacing, pothole repair, signs and striping, traffic signals and for funding local shuttles. The money can also be used for street sweeping and storm-inlet cleaning.